Whole school approach to sleeping - a guide for schools

Click on the links to access information, guidance and resources that can be applied to a whole-school approach.

While sleep 'happens' at home, there is a lot we can do in our schools and settings to help children and young people (CYP) and their families understand the value of good sleep and support them when they face difficulties.

EPSS have developed this padlet which signposts to many useful resources including around good sleep habits, neurodiversity, complex needs and self-care tips for families. They also signpost to this padlet around teen sleep.

Curriculum

Through RSHE, we can teach CYP about the benefits and importance of daily exercise, good nutrition and sufficient sleep. We can talk to CYP about what they think sleep is for and it's benefits for our health. It can also be helpful to discuss with CYP what helps them sleep and what makes it more difficult for them to sleep.

CYP should learn about the importance of sufficient good quality sleep for good health and that a lack of sleep can affect weight, mood and ability to learn.

Resources to support learning

The PSHE Association provides lesson plans for KS1 / KS2 and KS3 / KS4 on sleep.

Public Health England provide lesson plans for year 6 and KS3 / KS4 on sleep.

The Mental Health Foundation provide a school pack (designed to be used in secondary, but with lots of useful information for primary) which includes:

• A lesson plan with PowerPoint slides and worksheets, that support pupils to explore the topic of sleep in more depth. 
• An assembly plan with PowerPoint slides and posters to support the development of a whole-school approach to developing good sleep health. 
• Helpful guides for CYP, school staff, and families on supporting ourselves and others with sleep.  
• Classroom based activities and resources for CYP.

The Teen Sleep Hub provide resources that can be used with KS3 and KS4 to tackle the reasons why young people don't sleep well, the impact of sleep deprivation and encourage CYP to think about the small changes they could make to sleep better.

Top tips

It can be useful to share these top tips with CYP:

• Go to sleep and wake up at the same time each day.
• Have a predictable and consistent nighttime routine which relaxes you.
• Avoid caffeine, particularly in the afternoon.
• Turn off computer screens or other devices at least an hour before bedtime.
  • The blue light from screen time interferes with melatonin, the 'sleep hormone', and stops the brain from feeling sleepy.
• Try to have low lighting and a quiet space in the bedroom.
• Avoiding checking mobile devices or other screen if you wake up during the night.

You can find some more helpful tips to share with CYP in this guidance.

The school day

During the school day, plan in opportunities for CYP to be in natural daylight for at least half an hour, particularly in the morning and make sure there are plenty of chances for exercise.

Also ensure CYP are supported to develop positive coping strategies for regulating their emotions and managing their stress levels as we know stress and worry can impact on sleep. More guidance on this can be found within our self-regulation toolkit (resource coming soon).

Signs to look out for

Here are some signs you may notice for a CYP who is having problems with their sleep:

• They are irritable, easily upset, defiant, tired or overly energetic
• Have poor focus and motivation
• Are not able to achieve what they usually would
• Fall asleep at inappropriate times
• Late to school or lower attendance
• Eat and drink too much.

If you are at all concerned about a CYP, you should always speak to your designated safeguarding lead as a matter of priority who will be able to support you with next steps.

Helpful signposting for CYP

• Mental Health Foundation provides a 'Top tips for sleep' sheet for secondary-aged CYP, accessed through their school pack.
• The Teen Sleep Hub provides advice and information for teens and young people around sleep.
• 'Just One Norfolk's new service for CYP - 'FYI' provides trusted help, advice and information for 11 to 24 year olds. They also have information and guidance around sleep.
• Young Minds provide information and advice around sleeping problems.

Supporting CYP with medical conditions who may need to sleep during the school day

The Children and Families Act 2014 places a duty on governing bodies of maintained schools, proprietors of academies and management committees of PRUs to make arrangements for supporting CYP at their school with medical conditions.

While there are a wide variety of medical conditions resulting in fatigue and tiredness, the need to sleep in school may be triggered by some of the following conditions: Epilepsy, Cancer and Cancer treatments, Ehlers Danlos, Diabetes, Narcolepsy, Stroke, Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis, Neurofibromatosis and Muscular Dystrophy

Essex has provided further guidance for schools on this topic including how to develop a sleep plan, identifying appropriate places to sleep, planning an appropriate length of time for a CYP to sleep and keeping a sleep monitoring chart.

• Norfolk Healthy Child Programme presented this sleep webinar to designated safeguarding leads in 2021.
• The Better Sleep Programme is an NHS team which provides training and supervision to professionals across lots of different services to try and help young people access better help with their sleep as early as possible. They have developed an intervention designed to help young people improve their sleep, especially those who might have difficulties with their emotional or mental health and wellbeing. Contact bettersleepprogramme@nsft.nhs.uk for more information.

Top tips

It can be helpful to share some tips with families around sleep:

• Establish regular routines and a positive sleep space to help children and young people (CYP) settle at bedtimes.
  • EPSS uses a visual to explain how much sleep people need at different stages of their lives, which you can share with families. Regarding school-age children:
    • 3-5 yrs need 9-14 hours
    • 6-13 yrs need 9-11 hours
    • 14-17 yrs need 8-10 hours
• Make sure the room is not too hot or too cold.
• Ensure the room is dark. Low level night lights are ok.
• Have somewhere safe and comfortable to sleep.
• Consider what foods are being eaten just before bedtime.
  • EPSS shares guidance around the best and worst foods for sleep.

Set up positive routines before bed:

• Same bedtime and get up time each day.
• Plan 'wind down' activities e.g. bath time, reading, quiet play.
  • Using relaxation techniques can help.
• Avoid stimulating activities like 'exciting' computer games.
• Stop screen use at least an hour before bed.
  • The blue light from screen time interferes with melatonin, the 'sleep hormone', and stops the brain from feeling sleepy.

The NHS provides some additional tips for families.

If families are really struggling with their child or children not sleeping, it can be helpful to encourage them to begin a 'Sleep Diary'. A sleep diary can be helpful in establishing if there's any pattern with their children's sleep issue. For instance, it might identify if there's difficulty going to sleep on a Sunday night because of anxiety about school. The Sleep Charity provides more information and helpful diary templates.

Local support

Families can contact the National Sleep Helpline on 03303 530541 for support and advice. This is available Sunday to Thursday, 7pm - 9pm. The helpline is run by a team of specialist trained sleep advisors. Although they cannot give medical advice, they can talk through issues, offer some practical strategies and recommend services that could help.

Families can also contact the Healthy Child Programme by calling Just One Number on 0300 300 0123 or texting Parentline on 07520 631590. Opening hours are 8am-6pm on Monday-Friday (excluding bank holidays) and 9am-1pm on Saturdays.

The Wellbeing Service in Norfolk and Waveney provides wellbeing support for adults.

Early Childhood and Family Service supports all Norfolk families with children under 5 years.

Signposting to online resources

• Just One Norfolk provides guidance on sleep including for families of CYP with additional needs.
• Norfolk and Suffolk NHS provides some information and resources on sleep including a pre-recorded workshop.
• Mental Health Foundation provides a 'Guide for Caregivers' accessed through their school pack.
• The Sleep Charity also provides some helpful advice for families including information on bedroom environments, diet, routines and advice for CYP with SEND. They also have their World of Sleep eBook, released as part of its 'Tired of Being Alone' campaign to support families who have a child or children that struggles to get good quality sleep. It's a helpful guide that shows how common sleep issues are, that parents are not alone and that help and support is available.
• The Teen Sleep Hub provides advice specific to teenagers.
• The Sleep Foundation provides a range of information and guidance including sleep tips and common sleep problems for all ages, bedwetting, nightmares and how blue light impacts on sleep.
• A collection of Sleep Apps for CYP which feature stories and meditations that will help with bedtime routines.